Explosions shook the ground, and the heavy scent of blood and burning metal filled the air, pressing down on his lungs. Thick, acrid smoke lay low to the ground, covering the bodies of the wounded and the fallen, while above the battlefield, like harbingers of death, ravens circled, patiently awaiting their time.
The screams of the wounded tore through the air, blending with the piercing clash of swords. Lido stood at the center of this hell, his gaze darting across the battlefield, his insides trembling with the realization of what was happening.
The soldiers of the Western Empire fought desperately, but the fear frozen in their eyes was almost tangible. Each one knew that the battle was already lost, yet none of them could retreat.
He understood that if they stayed, the Manamids would close the circle and annihilate them. This was more than just a battle - it was a trap, meticulously laid with cold calculation.
- Commander! What are your orders?! - a sergeant ran up to him, breathless, fear and despair swirling in his gaze.
Lido opened his mouth, ready to give the order to retreat, but suddenly he felt something powerful, almost physical, grip his mind like a vise, squeezing out his will. It seemed as though his consciousness was plunging into dense darkness, as if someone invisible was pressing down on his thoughts.
In the next instant, his body felt as if it no longer belonged to him - his muscles tensed, his hands rose on their own, like a puppet on strings controlled by an unseen puppeteer. In his mind, a foreign, deep, commanding voice thundered like a storm.
- Forward, my sons! Attack! - the order of the player, who had taken control of his body, echoed across the battlefield.
Lido tried to resist, but his own body seemed to betray him, obeying the foreign command. With each passing moment, it grew distant from him, transforming into a compliant instrument in another's hands.
The soldiers, caught in this divine web, raised their swords and shouted:
- God is with us! - and they charged forward, blinded by divine inspiration.
Lido saw them and screamed with all his might, within his mind:
- No! This is a mistake! Everyone, fall back! We'll perish if we attack!
But his cries crashed against a silent, invisible wall. He couldn't stop his soldiers, who were advancing under the command of a player oblivious to what was truly happening on the battlefield. His consciousness thrashed, trembling with despair, beating against the barrier, trying to reclaim control.
- I must stop this! - Lido gritted his teeth and, summoning his will, began hammering at the barrier, blow after blow.
Each strike reverberated as sharp, throbbing pain in his head, as though his skull were splitting from the internal strain. His hands shook from exhaustion, his body felt drained, but he knew that if he surrendered now, his army was doomed.
His heart pounded so fiercely it seemed it might burst from his chest at any moment. Each blow against the barrier echoed this heartbeat, each second bringing him closer to his goal.
- I won't lose… Not now… Not again… - he repeated to himself, with each new blow feeling the barrier weaken.
- Just one more… hit… - he whispered, sensing that he was on the verge of victory.
Boom!
The barrier cracked, then shattered with a thunderous crash, like a mirror smashing against stone slabs. At first, he felt only a tingling in his fingertips, and then a surge of energy washed over him like a powerful wave.
His hands obeyed him once more. His heart resumed its normal rhythm, and a cold, clear certainty filled his body.
- I'm back… - Lido whispered, feeling the warmth of victory spread through him. Control was his again, and now this wasn't just a battle - it was his battle.
- All those not engaged in battle, fall back to the pass! - his voice, like a clap of thunder, cut through the noise of the battlefield.
The warriors who hadn't fallen under the influence of the player's command began to regroup and retreat. But those already captured by that foreign will surged forward, driven by blind faith.
- First battalion, hold your ground! Delay them while the others retreat! - commanded Lido, understanding that some of his soldiers were doomed.
- Everyone else, advance to the pass! We'll bury them there!
Captain Lennox said nothing, but his face showed complete understanding and readiness. He knew this was their only chance and understood that the first units were doomed.
Lido knew that if they reached the pass, where the narrow passage between the cliffs became a natural fortress, they'd have a chance at survival. There, the Manamids' numerical advantage would be meaningless.
One man could stand against a dozen enemies in that narrow passage, and none of their tactics would work. Memories of past defeats flickered in his mind, but now everything was different. Now, he controlled the battle.
- Kill the western heretics! - the cries of the enemy echoed from all sides.
- Commander, the Manamids are gaining on us! - came the sergeant's voice, breaking through the battle's din.
- Commander, I'll hold them off, - Captain Lennox said firmly, as if sensing that this would be his last battle.
Lido's heart clenched painfully, as though an invisible hand gripped it with an iron grip. Lennox was more than just a soldier - he was a brother-in-arms, a steadfast companion who had saved his life more than once. The thought of leaving him behind tore at his soul. Yes, this sacrifice could save them all, but the price was too high.
- Lennox… - Lido whispered softly, feeling guilt and bitterness twist into a tight knot within him.
- You deserve better...
But there was no time to hesitate, and he knew Lennox had made his decision. Ahead lay the pass, and Lido understood that he had to see this through to the end to justify his sacrifice.
Let his death not be in vain, he thought, suppressing the tremor in his hands. He had to stay strong for those who were still with him, for those who relied on him.
The Manamids charged like a furious avalanche, abandoning all semblance of order. They were certain of their victory, not thinking that anyone could stop them. Lennox understood this. He knew that even a few minutes of delay would give Lido's army a chance to escape.
- No, captain, we need you at the pass! - Lido shouted, though his voice wavered with uncertainty.
- Good luck, Commander. May the Lord be with you, - Lennox replied firmly and, without looking back, headed toward the advancing enemy.
Lido watched his captain's retreating silhouette, feeling as if with every step something inside him died as well. It felt as though his own soul was being torn to pieces, but there was no time for pity. If he gave in to his feelings now, Lennox's and the others' sacrifice would be wasted.
Gritting his teeth, Lido steeled himself. There was only one path forward - to see this through to the end and win. Everything else - pain, fear, bitterness - could wait.
- Good luck, Lennox, - he whispered, knowing that this moment, these words, were their farewell. He knew this was his last look at a friend, at a man who had stood beside him in battle so many times.
In Lennox's eyes, there was unyielding determination, but deep within his gaze lay sorrow - the awareness that his path would end here, on this trampled, blood-soaked ground.
- Soldiers! Formation! Double Ethereality! - Lennox shouted, his voice strong and clear, despite the nearness of death.
- Ha Va! - his squad's powerful battle cry rang out, and their bodies became half-ethereal, as if they had dissolved into the air, slipping from their attackers' blows.
Boom!
The Manamids' blades clanged against empty ground, striking only ghostly silhouettes. Lennox and his soldiers danced between life and death, their ethereal bodies sliding, dodging attacks. The first and second ranks of the Manamids fell, their bodies hitting the blood-soaked ground with a dull thud.
- Show these bastards what glory and honor mean! - Lennox yelled, his face twisted in a fierce snarl, his eyes blazing with indomitable resolve. He fought, knowing it was his last stand, refusing to let fear eclipse his will.
But from the depths of the battlefield, the Managakars appeared - the elite of the Manamids, their auras radiating untamed power, their armor gleaming as though they were the embodiment of war itself.
- Astral Blade! - one of the Managakars shouted, leading his warriors forward. Their movements were swift, each strike deadly, each step relentless.
Lennox and his soldiers fought like beasts, their ethereal bodies sparking against the fire-lit background, but the Managakars' magic pierced their defenses. One by one, the soldiers fell, yet none abandoned their posts, meeting death resolutely, fighting for a noble cause.
When only Lennox remained, he stood alone, a wolf among the mound of fallen comrades. His breathing was ragged, his body covered in wounds, but his gaze was proud and unwavering.
- Ha... Commander Antar... - Lennox rasped, sinking to his knees. His gaze lingered on the pass, where Lido and his troops were already fortifying their positions. He smiled, knowing his sacrifice had made a difference, that his battle had not been in vain.
The last thing he saw was the swing of a Managakar's blade, and darkness engulfed him, leaving him to rest among the fallen enemies.
- Prepare for the assault! Exterminate the heretics! - shouted the Manamid captain, raising his sword as his soldiers charged forward with fierce determination.
- Commander, Captain Lennox's unit has been annihilated, - the sergeant approached Lido, his face etched with grief.
Lido clenched his fists, his heart filled with bitterness and unbearable anger. This no longer felt like a game. These people… They were alive. Each of them went into battle unafraid of death, and now their lives rested on his shoulders. He felt as if his soul had merged with the soul of the commander he was replacing, absorbing memories, defeats, and victories steeped in blood and honor.
- Each of them is unique... I don't want to lose a single one, - Lido whispered, barely holding back his tears.
- Lennox, my brother, you will not be forgotten. We will win, I promise you that!
- Commander, the second army has fortified the pass! - an officer shouted, approaching Lido through the smoke and chaos.
- Excellent, - Lido surveyed the blood-soaked battlefield, his face settling into a firm, almost stone-like expression.
- Now we'll flood the pass with their blood. Let them feel the full force of our wrath!
Lido took his place in the front line with his soldiers, gripping his sword tightly. His face was calm, his gaze steady and unyielding, as if he had accepted something inevitable. The enemy advanced, their shadows rolling across the battlefield like giant waves, each step seeming to shake the earth itself. But Lido and his warriors were ready.
- For Lennox! For our brothers! God is with us! - his voice cut through the battle, echoing in the hearts of every soldier.
- God is with us! - the soldiers repeated the cry, raising their swords to the sky, and for a moment, the light of the setting sun illuminated their faces, reflecting their resolve.
Fumm
And in that instant, everything vanished. The battlefield, the warriors, the enemies, the ravaged ground - all dissolved into a blinding, white light. Lido found himself once again in a vast, empty, white space, standing before the Game God. A desperate scream tore from his chest:
- No! Bring me back! I must finish that battle!
Lido felt the rage boiling within him, an unbearable fire seething in his soul. He had been so close to victory, and it had all disappeared in an instant.
- The battle ended long ago, Lido, - the Game God's voice was soft yet unyielding.
- Look
Before Lido appeared a haunting vision - the battlefield littered with the bodies of his soldiers, strewn about like broken toys. Blood and fragments of armor covered the ground, and in the dead eyes of the fallen, anguish and fury were frozen.
He saw the very place where Fenri had decided to throw his forces at the enemy commander, hoping for a swift victory. That gamble hadn't paid off - all his warriors had perished.
Fumm
Now, another scene unfolded before him: the same battlefield, still covered in bodies, but now his comrades lay there - those whom Antar, the real commander, had considered family. All these lives were destroyed. Blood soaked the earth, and in their still eyes, Lido thought he saw reproach for a fatal mistake.
Lennox and his men lay among the other fallen. Their bodies, bleeding, seemed abandoned, like unwanted pieces on a chessboard. This was the brutal outcome of Fenri's game, his error in sending Lennox on a suicidal mission.
- It could have ended differently, - the Game God said calmly, his voice like molten iron, burning into Lido's consciousness.
Fumm
Now a new vision appeared before Lido - the pass, that narrow passage where the ground was littered with the bodies of the enemy. The pass had become a fortress for those who had chosen to fight to the last. Here, the enemy's numbers were meaningless, because every soldier of the Empire was ready to die, but not to retreat.
Lido watched as the surviving Manamids clustered at the foot of the pass, their spirits broken, unwilling to mount another assault. In the center of the fortifications stood his alternate self - Commander Antar. Antar's face was stern, streaked with blood, but his eyes blazed with indomitable resolve.
- Come on, you bastards! - he shouted, brandishing his sword, challenging the remaining enemies.
- Stand and fight! - his soldiers echoed, rallying behind him.
- For General Antar! For the Empire! - the soldiers' cries resounded through the pass. They were ready to take dozens more Manamids with them, each seeing their death as the ultimate sacrifice for the Empire.
The Manamid general reluctantly ordered a retreat, realizing that any further assault would be suicidal.
Watching this, Lido felt his heart tighten with a strange, bittersweet sensation - a mixture of triumph and sorrow.
- Now do you understand what it means to be a player, Lido? - the Game God's quiet but unmistakable voice rang out.
- This is more than just games. Behind every victory and every defeat lie lives. It's a responsibility you cannot shed. Until we meet again, Lido. We will meet again
- Wait, hold on… - Lido's voice caught in his throat, but the words didn't have time to escape.
Fumm
- …on
The harsh ring of an alarm clock pulled him out of sleep, bringing him back to reality. For a moment, he thought he could still smell blood and hear the sounds of battle, but the dream faded quickly, leaving only a faint echo.
Lido opened his eyes abruptly. His heart was racing, his body tense as if he had just returned from the battlefield. He sat on the bed, his breathing ragged, the echoes of battle ringing in his mind. Everything felt so painfully real.
- Was it a dream? Or reality… - he whispered, staring at the ceiling. The room was silent, disturbed only by the sound of the alarm, which he promptly silenced.
He ran a hand over his face, trying to shake off the heaviness of the dream. Everything that had happened felt less like an illusion and more like part of his past. He felt drained, as if he had indeed commanded an army, as though every command had sapped his strength.
- Game God… that couldn't have been just a dream, - he murmured softly, clutching his head. A sense of unease grew within him, mixed with confusion.
With each passing moment, the dream grew more vivid. This wasn't an ordinary game. He had felt the pain, the terror, and the death of those he had commanded. Everything was unbearably real, and he couldn't simply brush it aside.
With effort, he rose from the bed and walked over to the mirror. He looked at his reflection and noticed a change: his eyes were filled with a determination that had once been foreign to him.
The world no longer felt the same, and now he knew that he had to uncover the truth, no matter the cost.